Staying on a ranch in a drought-ridden part of Mexico is not 12-year-old Carol's idea of a fun way to spend her summer holiday. She'd rather be hanging out with her American friends and getting ready to start a new phase of her life at high school. Her grandfather has dementia, his memory as dilapidated as his ranch, and there's a lot of tension between him and Carol's father as a result of unspoken family history. Carol herself is annoyed by his insistence on calling her either 'Rosa' (the name of her dead grandmother) or 'Carolina' - the Mexican version of her name which she despises.But grandpa's obsession with the bees that he is convinced will bring the rain sparks Carol's curiosity - especially when she starts seeing and hearing bees everywhere. And his stories about a magical tree draw her closer to him and challenge her perception of her Mexican roots and her family history.
This is beautiful magical realism where, at times, like grandpa's memories, it's difficult to say what is real life and what is story. It's exploration of identity puts it at the top end of the middle-grade age scale, but it would be a great read for 'tweens' who aren't quite ready for full-on teen/YA but are itching for a challenging and thought-provoking read.
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